Chrysler workers voted overwhelmingly – with 90 per cent approval – for a new four-year contract with their employer Sunday.

But while CAW national president Ken Lewenza said he is happy with the “good deal” he presented to members at Caesars Windsor, he added a dark cloud still hangs over their heads.

A long-term future in Canada is still in question, the Windsor native said.

“That’s why we’re going to need public policy mechanisms to improve the conditions in which we can attract investment,” he said after members voted.

Results, released Sunday night, reveal strong support across the board at Chrysler’s Canadian workplaces in Windsor, Brampton and Etobicoke. Production workers voted 90 per cent in favour, skilled trades voted 93 per cent and office and security staff voted 98 per cent.

“At the end of the day this is a good deal for our members and it’s a good deal for the company because we managed to maintain fixed costs because that was a liability long-term and hopefully we’ll get in a position where we can actually bargain wage increases in lieu of lump sum payments,” Lewenza said, referring to $9,000 in lump sums and a signing bonus over four years instead of any actual wage increase.

Lewenza said “it was very, very, tough because Chrysler is not in the same financial situation as General Motors and Ford.”

Dino Chiodo, chairperson of the master bargaining committee and president of CAW Local 444, told the crowd of workers the union’s three priorities during bargaining were job security, investment and product allocation. He urged members to ratify the deal.

The workers will get $2,000 lump sums in the second, third and fourth years of the deal.

Members will also receive a $3,000 signing bonus and protection of current pension benefits in the deal that also rejects a two-tier system in which new hires permanently make much less than existing workers.

The deal was struck after marathon negotiations, with the union becoming frustrated over Chrysler’s reluctance to match the Ford pattern.

“The only way we could get Chrysler into the corral was to put pressure on them,” Chiodo said. That pressure mounted when tentatives deals were struck first with Ford then General Motors, he said.

Ford members ratified the agreement by 82 per cent with General Motors not far behind at 73 per cent.

CAW Local 444 president Dino Chiodo, centre, speaks to Chrysler workers at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

Chiodo said he was proud to tell workers that the three-shift operation at Windsor Assembly Plant and two-shift operation at the Brampton assembly plant will be maintained for the life of the agreement.

“I think that Chrysler understood that this was a competitive deal…. They came here probably with a vision that they had to be different and look different, but at the end of the day we are able to achieve it without looking different, without getting whipsawed, without having to do what the UAW went through (agreeing to a two-tier wage system in the U.S.) and what they went through in Europe. So I give the executive team from Chrysler kudos.”

The new deal affects about 8,000 hourly workers Chrysler’s Canadian operations.

CAW Local 1498, which represents Windsor Chrysler technical, office and professional workers, held its ratification vote simultaneously at the Local 444 union hall on Turner Road.

The CAW was under pressure from the Detroit Three to lower its wage costs in order to bring them in line with the UAW.

Lewenza said Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne was initially very aggressive about chopping wages.

The union reached a tentative agreement with Chrysler on Wednesday.

“As I walk around people are acknowledging the hard work of the committee, they’re acknowledging, quite frankly, that their expectations were met relative to Chrysler’s initial argument against providing compensation consistent with General Motors and Ford,” Lewenza said. “So from that perspective people are happy.”

Worker Nahim Ibrahim, 43, said he was grateful to get a deal and to have a job.

” For the economic times I think it’s a fantastic deal,” Ibrahim said.

The Windsor Assembly worker of 18 years said he first thought the company’s threat to pull out of Canada was an empty one, but now he believes otherwise.

Ibrahim said many workers he spoke with were upset about the length of time it took to get the contract and the fact they will go another four years without a raise.

“A lot of people feel we should have been on strike from day one,” he said.

James Graham, 52, said there are always people who will say they should have got more but he and the majority of people he spoke with were content with the contract.

Lewenza said he respects Marchionne, whom he says played a significant role in the turnaround of Chrysler.

Chrysler executives hinted they would pull their plants from Canada if UAW contract features, such as a two-tier wage system for new employees, weren’t matched.

Financial analysts estimate Canada accounts for 27 per cent of Chrysler’s worldwide profit, according to the CAW.

Ken Lewenza, national president of CAW, speaks to Chrysler workers at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor, as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

CAW Local 444 president Dino Chiodo, centre, speaks to Chrysler workers at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

CAW Local 444 president Dino Chiodo, right, speaks to Chrysler workers at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

Chrysler workers listen to CAW Local 444 president Dino Chiodo speak at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

Chrysler workers listen to CAW Local 444 president Dino Chiodo speak at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

Chrysler workers listen to CAW Local 444 president Dino Chiodo speak at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

A Chrysler worker votes on a contract with Chrysler at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

A Chrysler worker votes on a contract with Chrysler at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

Ken Lewenza, centre, national president of CAW, speaks to Chrysler workers at the Colosseum at Caesars Windsor, as they vote to ratify a contract with Chrysler, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012. (DAX MELMER/The Windsor Star)

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Market to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.